May 29th Edition

The European soccer season mostly came to an end this past weekend, as leagues all across the continent wrapped up for the summer.

But a critical summer for Canadian soccer is only just beginning, as both national teams look to make history, players secure what could be record transfers and the domestic club season heats up.

In this week’s edition, the latest headlines around Canada Soccer, and more on what could be a magical summer for the program ahead.

🗓️ Get those calendars out (or shared Google Cals, to modernize this a bit) as there are a few key dates you’ll want to mark down for this coming summer:

First and foremost, July 20th, when the Canadian XNT kicks off the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia/New Zealand against Nigeria. CanXNT also play Republic of Ireland on July 26, before finishing up the group against host Australia on July 31. For manifestion reasons, the final is August 20.

For all their Olympic success, the XNT still haven’t quite had been able to replicate it at the World Cup tournament, with their best result in recent years being a quarter-final appearance at home in 2015.

The men’s national team, meanwhile, will be looking to win their first trophy in 23 years, starting with the Concacaf Nations League in Las Vegas on June 15. Canada play Panama in the semi-finals, before meeting either Mexico or the United States on June 18 in the final (or third place game, I guess).

A few weeks later, they kick off the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup with a match at BMO Field on June 27 (the opponent hasn’t been determined yet as it will come from Gold Cup qualifiers). They then play Guatamala and Cuba on July 1 and July 4 respectively in Houston. The final for that tournament in July 16, at the incredible SoFi Stadium.

Another date to keep in mind is July 1, which is when the international summer transfer window opens. There are several Canadian players on both national teams that could be set for blockbuster transfers. On the CanXNT side of things Ashley Lawrence looks set to make it a Canadian trio at Chelsea, while Portuguese league MVP Cloé Lacasse is all but confirmed to be joining her in London, with rivals Arsenal.

After scoring 24 goals for Lille in Ligue 1 this season, behind only Alex Lacazzette and some guy named Kylian Mbappe, Jonathan David will be one of the biggest names. Tajon Buchanan, meanwhile, has been heavily linked to Inter Milan.

🏆 Another trophy in the case for the wagon that is Chelsea FC Women, as they secure the FA WSL league title over the weekend with a 3-0 win over Deanne Rose’s Reading FC. Jessie Fleming came off the bench in the victory, while Kadeisha Buchanan was an unused sub. For those counting (and we very much are) make that four straight titles for Chelsea. Oh, and they might be adding Ashley Lawrence next year. Super team confirmed.

🎮 While both women and men ball out on the pitch, Canada qualifies for the FIFA eNations Cup. The eSports team finished second in their playoff qualifier group with 15 points in 10 games with top four teams qualifying for the next round. Canada then lost in the winners brackets against the US. However, the eSports team defeated Mexico for third place and then beating Panama in the loser final. Thereby qualifying Canada to the eNations Cup.

🍁 It’s looking like an all-MLS final in the CanChamps between Vancouver Whitecaps and CF Montreal. CF Montreal put away two goals in the second half against Forge FC. The Hamilton side started the game strong putting Montreal on their back foot. Montreal came out into the second half aggressive and with more pressure, with the game ending 2 - 0 for Montreal.

🌊 Meanwhile in Victoria, Pacific FC hosted BC rivals Vancouver Whitecaps. The MLS side started the game strong finding the back of the net twice within the first 17 minutes, with the game ending 3 - 0 for the Whitecaps. Credit to Pacific, the results do not reflect the quality of play the Victoria-side displayed in that matchup.

😰 It was a scary moment for Ali Ahmed as the 22 year old suffered a concussion and a temporary loss of consciousness during the match. The injury occurred minutes after Ahmed scored a banger putting the Whitecaps 2-0 over their BC rivals. Ali has thankfully been recently cleared to travel with the team back to Vancouver.

🇨🇦 Another strong showing for the U20 WNT team in the Concacaf Championship. The girls in red won have secured a spot in the semifinals after a pair of big group stage dubs, 4-0 over Jamaica and 5-0 over Panama. Olivia Smith has been running the show with a team-leading three goals. They play the United States in their group finale on Tuesday. The semifinals take place on Thursday, June 1 and should Canada win that match they will be off to the U20 Women’s World Cup.

⚽️ Cyle Larin is balling in La Liga. In the 22nd minute against Barcelona, Cyle Larin put away a penalty. The Canadian forward has now scored 8 goals in 17 games in one of the most technically demanding leagues in the world. Real Valladolid is currently fighting relagation at 18th place with 39 points and one match left to save their season, can’t really blame Larin’s efforts to save them though.

🔴 It doesn’t seem like it is quite ‘All for One’ these days over at Toronto FC after a tumultuous week that played out in the media. This piece in The Athletic is must-read on just how bad things have gotten at the club. It’s soap opera levels at this point, and seems to get spicier by the minute. Oh, also they won their match 2-0 against D.C. United this weekend and Lorenzo Insigne had two assists so…..

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scottish champion and CF Montreal export Alistair Johnston, returned from injury on Saturdayagainst Aberdeen. Things became worrisome as the fullback went down clutching his leg at the 64th minute. However, Celtic gaffer Ange Postecoglou believes that the injury is not as severe as they have worried, noting that the fullback should return soon.

🔵 Kamal Miller returned to Stade Saputo with CF Montreal hosting Inter Miami. The match ended 1-0 for CF Montreal with a Chinonso Offor tap in goal. This game also witnessed masterclass performance from Montreal native Joanthan Sirois, as the CPL goalkeeper of year has registered 4 straight clean sheets in 405 minutes in MLS. Montreal is cooking something nice and it’s not poutine.

🇫🇷 Vanessa Gilles re-signs loan extension with Lyon through June 2024. The Candian defender will play for French heavyweights Olympique Lyonnais for another year. Angel City FC will have to wait a little longer for a return.

🕷️ From baller to rapper and now actor, Alphonso Davies will voice in the upcoming German edition of Spider-man: Across the Spider-Verse. Phonzy will be voicing the character “Spider-man ‘67.”

🏆 More Phonzy news, Bayern Munich win their 11th straight Bundesliga title after Borussia Dortmund lose their title chance by drawing 2-2 at home versus Mainz, effectively handing the title to the Bavarian powerhouse.

📚 What to read

It is hard to believe, but there was a time when English footy wasn’t the incredible global industry leader it is now. Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg’s excellent account of how the Premier League came to be, and how it turned the biggest sport in England into a genuine business. It sounds boring, trust me — as with anything in football business, it is anything but. ‘The Club’ is a must read book for any football fan.

📺 What to watch

Onesoccer’s youtube channel has really been stepping up the content this season, and one of the can’t miss segments has been Canadians Abroad, where host Josh Deming, friend of The Northern Pitch Alex Gangue-Ruzic and Peter Galindo break down the biggest stories surrounding Canadians playing around the world.

🛍️ What to buy

We spoke about it on a previous edition of The Northern Pitch, but League1 BC side Nautsa’mawt FC recently launched a jersey and merch collection designed by Coast Salish artish Maynard Johnny Jr. Now having the merch in hand, I can vouch that it is top quality and absolutely worth picking up both for its incredible design, meaning and comfort.

✅ Who to follow

For all the latest news, highlights and CanSocc commentary throughout the week, @CanSoccerDaily on twitter is an excellent resource. The newly established Canadian Soccer news website also recently acquired leading Toronto FC news site (where I got my start). Top writers, top GIFs, everything you want to stay informed as a Canadian footy fan.